Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mexico City and Hillcrest

For one person, living is cheaper in Hillcrest: $1,081 a month against $1,674 in Mexico City, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Mexico City
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Mexico City Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Hillcrest
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Hillcrest Living Index

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Mexico City

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,674

/mo nomad

Hillcrest

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,081

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Mexico City and in Hillcrest

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Mexico City and in Hillcrest actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,674 per month in Mexico City vs $1,081 in Hillcrest, rent included.

Mexico City $1,674
Hillcrest $1,081

A couple spends around $2,606 per month in Mexico City vs $1,686 in Hillcrest, rent included.

Mexico City $2,606
Hillcrest $1,686

A family of three spends $3,537 per month in Mexico City vs $2,292 in Hillcrest, rent included.

Mexico City $3,537
Hillcrest $2,292

Mexico City costs about 55% more than Hillcrest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Mexico City sits 24% above the global median, while Hillcrest is 20% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.59 MX$197

$7.87 R 130

34.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$52.0 MX$967

$38.34 R 631

35.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 MX$200

$6.01 R 98.9

78.54%

Cappuccino

$3.80 MX$70.7

$2.71 R 44.65

40.22%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 MX$30.01

$1.14 R 18.75

41.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.21 MX$22.55

$0.90 R 14.75

34.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 MX$59.1

$2.45 R 40.33

29.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 MX$101

$2.50 R 41.15

117.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 MX$31.96

$1.18 R 19.33

45.76%

White Bread (500g)

$2.97 MX$55.2

$0.98 R 16.18

203.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.93 MX$35.84

$1.50 R 24.65

28.67%

Eggs

$2.77 MX$51.6

$2.32 R 38.20

19.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.67 MX$217

$8.19 R 135

42.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.48 MX$176

$5.05 R 83.0

87.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.37 MX$286

$7.27 R 120

111.42%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 MX$57.8

$1.29 R 21.28

140.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.96 MX$36.49

$1.93 R 31.68

1.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 MX$36.88

$1.95 R 32.02

1.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.34 MX$43.46

$1.73 R 28.50

35.26%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 MX$37.66

$1.46 R 24.05

38.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 MX$33.95

$1.44 R 23.74

26.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 MX$28.74

$1.21 R 19.83

27.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 MX$24.42

$1.14 R 18.76

14.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.35 MX$99.6

$3.71 R 61.0

44.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.19 MX$301

$4.80 R 78.9

237.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 MX$36.46

$1.41 R 23.16

39.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.35 MX$81.0

$1.96 R 32.28

121.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.30 MX$5.67

$1.54 R 25.25

-80.52%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$19.49 MX$363

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.92 MX$35.68

$0.44 R 7.16

336.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.47 MX$8.80

$0.71 R 11.64

-33.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 MX$101

$7.70 R 127

-29.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MX$27.61

$1.45 R 23.91

2.07%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$21.4K MX$397.7K

$35.2K R 579.2K

-39.30%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$23.8K MX$442.1K

$33.1K R 543.7K

-28.13%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$62.0 MX$1,154

$153 R 2,517

-59.49%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$28.47 MX$530

$35.61 R 586

-20.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.11 MX$635

$39.04 R 642

-12.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.4 MX$1,087

$33.00 R 543

76.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.50 MX$456

$13.55 R 223

80.81%

Cinema Ticket

$6.59 MX$123

$7.29 R 120

-9.60%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$434 MX$8,081

$310 R 5,106

39.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.0K MX$261.2K

$7,429 R 122.2K

88.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.4 MX$1,272

$51.6 R 849

32.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 MX$1,020

$27.96 R 460

95.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 MX$2,063

$97.0 R 1,595

14.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 MX$2,159

$79.2 R 1,302

46.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,179 MX$21.9K

$377 R 6,195

213.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$771 MX$14.3K

$353 R 5,800

118.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,570 MX$47.8K

$640 R 10.5K

301.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,420 MX$26.4K

$732 R 12.0K

93.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,586 MX$66.7K

$764 R 12.6K

369.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,064 MX$38.4K

$575 R 9,455

259.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,003 MX$18.7K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.35

11.78

-3.65%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Mexico City: November 1, 2026

Last update for Hillcrest: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Mexico City

$771 46.1%

Hillcrest

$353 32.6% 54.3% $418

Groceries & Markets

Mexico City

$324 19.3%

Hillcrest

$189 17.5% 41.5% $134

Eating Out

Mexico City

$201 12%

Hillcrest

$139 12.9% 30.7% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Mexico City

$158 9.4%

Hillcrest

$115 10.6% 27% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mexico City

$125 7.4%

Hillcrest

$228 21.1% 82.8% $103

Sport & Entertainment

Mexico City

$72 4.3%

Hillcrest

$48 4.4% 33.5% $24

Getting Around

Mexico City

$25 1.5%

Hillcrest

$10 * 0.9% 59.5% $15

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,179 in Mexico City versus $377 in Hillcrest. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52 in Mexico City versus $38 in Hillcrest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $324 vs $189 – making Hillcrest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Mexico City

🇿🇦 Hillcrest

🕒 Local time

13:07 1:07 PM

21:07 9:07 PM

8 h ahead of Mexico City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,209,944 Capital

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.37 USD

100 MXN = 4.79 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.08 USD

100 ZAR = 5.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 18.61 MXN (100 MXN = 5.37 USD). 1 EUR = 20.86 MXN (100 MXN = 4.79 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 16.45 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.08 USD). 1 EUR = 18.44 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.42 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Mexico City Hillcrest 14,860 km ≈ 19 h nonstop flight

From you

Mexico City
Hillcrest

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Mexico City vs Hillcrest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,674 in Mexico City, $1,081 in Hillcrest – Hillcrest comes out roughly 35% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,510 per month in Mexico City and $1,622 in Hillcrest. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Hillcrest, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $377 there versus $1,179 in Mexico City.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $52 in Mexico City and $38 in Hillcrest. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 71% more in Mexico City, though the gap depends on what you buy.

$2,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $1,674 in Mexico City and $1,081 in Hillcrest, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Hillcrest costs $1,081 versus $1,674 in Mexico City. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.